Saffron

On Sun, 30 Jan 2011 13:20:41 +1300, Miche wrote:


Sounds like we should prescribe it for ADD.

I haven't used food coloring for 20+ years. If I did need yellow, I
would use tumeric or achiote.

Though I have to admit a little bit of saffron can turn a batch of
clothes quite yellow. Trust me on that.

-sw
 
"James Silverton" wrote in message
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A friend brought me some packets of Spanish saffron threads from a trip
abroad. Frankly, I wasn't impressed. I understand it's pricy because the
stamens have to be hand picked. In terms of flavour, I found it very
disappointing. It made the rice a nice golden yellow but other than that it
was pretty bland. I'd rather use turmeric (which many people do as a
substitute in dishes like paella). Turmeric is not only less expensive, it
has more flavour. Just my opinion, of course.

Jill
 
"jmcquown" wrote:

You were obviously gifted faux saffron (just a colorant), real saffron
is very flavorful. Try a half gram of Spanish Coupe Saffron from
Penzeys and report back. Saffron is excellent in chicken stock, add
just 3-4 threads per quart. Btw, don't let anyone fool you, there is
no location on the planet where real saffron is cheap. I don't use
saffron often so I buy it one gram at a time and keep it in a small
glass vial in my freezer, one gram can last me about five years as
very little is needed to flavor a dish. For yellow rice I usually go
cheap by adding a packet of Goya Sazon with achiote or Mexican saffron
which is not really saffron, only saffron color. But I sometimes
treat myself to this, excellent:
http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/p-penzeysmaharajah.html
 
"Janet" wrote in message
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If it came from Penzey's (or the Spice House) and they said it was saffron,
it was. I've never heard of Penzey's ripping someone off like that. Buy it
in some dinky dingy market, yeah, probably not saffron.

Jill
 
On 2011-01-30, jmcquown wrote:


I would tend to trust Penzey's, though I've never dealt with them.
OTOH, not all sources can be assumed to be authentic. San Francisco
Spice Co is another large supplier, they providing the spices for one
of our local health food stores. Guess what I discovered. Their
version of Chinese five spice blend does not use Szechuan peppers, a
critical component, but subs plain black pepper. Sorry, but this
makes their 5 spc blnd totally bogus, IMO. Buyer beware. ;)

nb
 
On 1/30/2011 2:46 AM, jmcquown wrote:

I agree, Jill. I brought a tiny bit of saffron back from Barcelona. I
soaked a tad in hot water until the water turned yellow then used the
water for baking challah. The bread was a lovely pale yellow. It was
traditional to honor the sabbath by putting saffron in the challah
because the spice was so costly.

--
Janet Wilder
Way-the-heck-south Texas
Spelling doesn't count. Cooking does.
 
jmcquown wrote:

It's possible neither of you gave it time to infuse.
If you put dry threads in the pot of rice right at the
beginning, it will not have given up all of its color
or flavor by the time the rice is done. I'd recommend
soaking the threads in the water which will be used for
cooking the rice overnight.

I've tried making an infusion by simply leaving the
threads in a jar of water in the refrigerator for a long
time (weeks) to see what happens. It holds the color for
a couple of weeks or so, but then gradually loses it.

If you really want to know the flavor of saffron, dip
two fingers held together into a jar of water infusion,
then inhale the liquid held between your fingers up
your nose. I've done that many times. It is interesting.
I think the best deal on saffron in terms of freshness
and quality are the little jars of threads at Trader Joe's.
 
Mark Thorson wrote:



This makes sense.

I used to make saffron ice cream, and I'd let the saffron soak
in a little rum or brandy for 30 minutes before combining it
with the other ingredients. This worked really well.

It was pretty much the only "exotic" ice cream flavor I had down pat.

Steve
 
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